Visiting Kong
by Muis
Summary: A missing scene vignette. Ann Darrow visits Kong and comes to a decision.


**Visiting Kong  
**

It had been three weeks since her return from Skull Island and Ann Darrow's wounds had healed fine. At least the physical ones.

She brushed the snow off her long overcoat and it started melting almost as soon as it hit the floor. Was it just her or was it really hot in here? They must keep it warm in here for him...

"Miss Darrow?" A middle-aged man wearing a long white labcoat had appeared in front of her. "We've been expecting you. Can I take your coat?"

Ann took off her coat and hat and handed them to him. "Yes, thank you."

After the man was done hanging up her coat he extended his right hand. "Let me introduce myself. I'm Doctor Landsman." There was a slight hint of a Yiddish accent to his voice and Ann found his appearance was far from unpleasant.

"Nice to meet you, Doctor." Ann took his hand in hers, shook it and gave the doctor one of her trademark smiles. If there was one thing she had learned from acting, it was how to turn on the charm.

"Mister Denham sends his regards. Please follow me."

Denham. That name sparked mixed feelings in Ann's mind. Sure, the man had been part of the expedition to rescue her when she had been lost in Skull Island's prehistoric jungle, but she felt he only did it so he could get some footage of the ape. He went home with a lot more. A _lot_ more.

And now Denham was offering her amazing amounts of money to perform with the ape on Broadway. Less than a year ago, she would've jumped at the opportunity to be on Broadway, money or not, but things had changed.

They passed through several rooms before they came to a room with a big iron door on the far end, guarded by two policemen holding Tommy Guns vertically across their chests.

"Now, Miss Darrow." The doctor stopped and turned around to face Ann. "Are you sure you want to go through with this?"

"I'm quite sure, Doctor." She gave him another one of her smiles and Doctor Landsman replied in kind.

"You see," he continued, "as a rule of thumb we try not too arouse him too much. We keep him sedated, but, needless to say, it takes a lot of tranquilizer."

"I understand, Doctor."

Doctor Landsman looked down at the floor, nodded to himself, sighed and then looked back up at Ann. "All right. Please wait here." He walked over to the policemen and they had a quiet exchange of words.

Ann looked around the room. It had an arched ceiling with exposed beams high over her head. Despite this, it wasn't a very large room and it seemed like the wall with the door was a recent addition. She had heard that before it was used for its current purpose it had been some kind of factory, but it had been abandoned for quite some time.

Out of the corner of her eye she noticed the doctor waving her over. "Miss Darrow?" She walked over to him as the policemen started opening the heavy iron door. "I understand he's asleep. I would advise you to try not to wake him."

Ann hardly heard the Doctor as all her attention was on the door that slowly started to give way. Inside she caught her first glimpse of... of him. A paw. Or was it something else? It was quite hard to make out in the dim lighting.

"These officers and I will accompany you in. Mister Denham's wishes."

"That's all right." It didn't matter to her at this point, she just wanted to get in there. How she had gotten Denham to even agree to this was beyond her. She had said that she would think about his offer, but only if she could get to see the ape. Denham had agreed instantly. He was getting desperate...

She stepped into the room and the smell immediately transported her back to Skull Island. She couldn't help but shiver... A lump started forming in her throat and she could feel her eyes starting to water at the sight she beheld.

There he was, "The Mighty Kong" as Denham had started referring to him. Chains extended from big metal rings placed in the concrete floor up to his limbs. He was lying on his side on the concrete, eyes closed, breathing slowly.

She noticed his wounds had also healed nicely. The wounds he had sustained defending her against... Against what? Dinosaurs? It was all still so unreal to her.

"He's been doing fairly well under the circumstances," The doctor whispered.

Ann, unable to speak, just nodded and brought her hand up to her face as she tried to swallow the sadness welling up.

"Are you all right, Miss Darrow?"

"Yes, I'm... I'm fine." Why was she doing this? What had she felt she had to gain by coming here?

The doctor gave her a genuinely worried look and then continued. "He's been eating well. You can't believe the amounts of bananas he takes in on a daily basis. Prices have skyrocketed, I tell you."

Ann wasn't really listening, but nodded out of courtesy. She took a step closer to the creature's head. And another... And another...

"Please Miss Darrow, I wouldn't get too close," the doctor nervously whispered behind her. Ann ignored his warning and took another step. "Miss Darrow, please!"

Suddenly, the ape stirred. His nostrils flared as if he'd picked up a scent, _her_ scent. The doctor and the policemen seemed to notice as well, as she heard a gasp behind her. She turned around, instinctively, to see who had exclaimed said gasp. When she turned back she was looking right into his yellow eye...

The first thought that crossed her mind was that he looked sad. And that was the only thought she was allowed as one of the policemen grabbed her and pulled her back. The ape reacted instantly, was on his feet in less than two seconds, rising up to his full length and letting out a deafening roar, chains rattling.

It had all happened so fast that Ann didn't have time to react as one of the policemen started to pull her backwards, out of the room. To her right she noticed the doctor opening a cabinet and pulling out a big elephant rifle.

"Wait, no!" she yelled before she even realized she was yelling. But it was too late, she was already out of the room and the other policeman had started shutting the doors.

She heard a shot, another roar and then another shot. After that everything became eerily quiet.

"Let go of me!" she shouted at the policeman as she freed herself from his grip. The policeman said nothing and just stepped back.

A short moment later, the doctor walked up to her, still holding the rifle. He wiped the sweat off his brow with a white handkerchief.

"What did you do to him?" she yelled at him angrily and started to walk towards the door. She was stopped by the policeman.

"Don't worry, Miss Darrow, I only sedated him," the doctor said calmly. "I'm sorry you had to witness that." A sorrowful expression appeared on his face.

She pushed the policeman away from her and straightened her dress. "I'd like to leave now," she said, with her chin up defiantly. The tears streaking her face really took away from her attempt to look confident.

The doctor once again nodded to himself and sighed. "I understand."

Ann turned around and marched out of the room, walking through rooms faster and faster until she was running. When she came to the front door, she grabbed her coat and hat and dashed out into the cold winter air. The taxicab she had arrived in was still waiting for her.

She opened the door, got in and slammed the door shut. To the cabdriver she said, "Please take me home."

"Yes, ma'am." The driver turned around, started the engine and drove towards the gate. "Are you all right, ma'am?"

"Yes, I'm fine," she lied.

The taxi passed through the gates and turned onto the main road, back to Manhattan.

_I'm not going to do it,_ she thought to herself. _I'm not going to be able to go through that every night. No matter _how_ well it pays. _The sight of such a mighty animal in chains had rocked her to her very core. And the sadness in his eyes, it had nearly broken her heart.

She sighed a whimpering sigh, wiped her tears on the sleeve of her coat and stared out the window where a brightly lit Empire State Building caught her eye.


End file.
